Latest news with #GLBTQLegalAdvocates&Defenders
Yahoo
17-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Western New England Law prof fighting Trump's ban on trans people from military
SPRINGFIELD — One day after President Donald Trump issued an executive order that called for a ban on transgender people from the military, GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and the National Center for Lesbian Rights sued the government. Filed in late January, the case was the first lawsuit to challenge the ban, according to The Associated Press. One of the lead attorneys is Jennifer Levi, a senior director of transgender and queer rights at GLAD and a professor of law at Western New England University. 'This is such a compelling case, because the service members I represent have met all the rigorous standards for service in the military,' Levi said. 'There's no justification the military has advanced that explains why someone who is meeting those rigorous standards can't continue to (serve).' A federal judge has since blocked enforcement of Trump's order, but the matter isn't settled in the long-term, as lawsuits and a federal government appeal play out. On Jan. 27, Trump's executive order 'Prioritizing Military Excellence and Readiness' declared that transgender people are not fit to serve in the military. 'Expressing a false 'gender identity' divergent from an individual's sex cannot satisfy the rigorous standards necessary for military service,' it said. 'A man's assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member.' The order directs Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to update policies. Levi and attorneys from other firms filed the suit on behalf of six transgender service members and two inactive members who wanted to re-enlist. More plaintiffs have joined since then. The ban has been devastating for transgender servicemembers, Levi said. One person she heard from was pulled out of an active combat zone and put on administrative leave, she said. 'They are people who have put their lives on the line, some of them for decades, to protect the values and the principles upon which our country stands,' Levi said. That includes plaintiffs like Nicolas Talbott, a second lieutenant in the Army. Talbott, 31, is assigned to the Army Reserves in Pennsylvania, according to the complaint. 'When you put on the uniform, differences fall away, and what matters is your ability to do the job,' Talbott said in a statement. 'My being transgender has no bearing on my dedication to the mission, my commitment to my unit, or my ability to perform my duties in accordance with the high standards expected of me and every servicemember.' In that lawsuit case, U.S. District Judge Ana Reyes in Washington, D.C., blocked the order last month, saying it likely violates transgender service member's constitutional rights. A federal appeals court then temporarily paused Reyes' stay while it considers the issue. Oral arguments are scheduled Tuesday in the U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals. U.S. Department of Justice attorneys that are representing the government did not immediately reply to The Republican's request for comment on the lawsuit and appeal. In the case of a similar lawsuit challenging the federal ban, a judge in Washington state also blocked the order last month, a pause that remains in effect. Transgender people are currently allowed to serve as the cases moved forward, Levi said. The issue could end up in the nation's highest court. 'It's obviously an issue of national significance,' Levi said. 'This administration has been aggressive in its efforts to see policies enforced. It would be not surprising to see it head to the Supreme Court.' In 2017, GLAD and others sued over another ban of transgender people in the military, which the Supreme Court in 2019 allowed to take effect while suits against it were pending. Joe Biden later reversed the ban. 'This current purge of transgender people is harsher and more wide-sweeping in its breath,' Levi said. Transgender military members would be subject to administrative separation, a process typically used for misconduct, Levi said. It can have a 'harsh and has long-lasting impact even after discharge,' she said. Even before Trump's inauguration, Levi was hearing concerns from transgender people about future policies. 'There are thousands of transgender people serving in the military that had to plan for navigating such a harsh presidential administration,' Levi said. The Department of Defense has estimated there's about 4,240 transgender people in the U.S. military. In the current 'challenging times,' Levi said her work gives her hope. 'I have a deep and abiding belief in our constitutional democracy,' she said. 'I think the founding principles of justice and equality and liberty are strong, and it's in moments of political challenge, where it's even more important to strive to ensure the promises of freedom and liberty and equality in the constitution are realized by everyone.' Plantings on West Springfield Town Common win recognition Holyoke Police capture suspect wanted for child abuse West Springfield committee to review town charter Suspect linked to stabbing at a WMass McDonald's arrested
Yahoo
18-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Third challenge filed to Trump's order on transgender troops
Two transgender service members are suing the Trump administration over a pair of executive orders targeting transgender Americans and their implementation by the U.S. military. The lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey by two transgender men — Master Sgt. Logan Ireland and Staff Sgt. Nicholas Bear Bade — argues that President Trump's executive orders proclaiming the government recognizes only two sexes, male and female, and barring trans people from serving openly in the military subject transgender service members 'to unequal, harmful, and demeaning treatment.' Ireland and Bade, represented by GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, are also challenging Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Air Force Secretary Gary Ashworth's implementation of those orders. Both Ireland and Bade are members of the U.S. Air Force with a combined 20 years of experience, according to court documents, and began their gender transitions more than a decade ago. They have each been placed on administrative absence and told they can only continue serving if they do so according to their birth sex. 'It is not possible, though, for either Plaintiff to serve as a woman because each one has medically transitioned to be and live as a man,' Monday's lawsuit states. 'And given the implementation timeline that the Trump Administration has publicized, both Plaintiffs reasonably fear that, as early as March 26, 2025, involuntary administrative separation proceedings will be initiated against them because of their transgender status.' The Pentagon, in a Feb. 26 policy memo, directed military leaders to begin identifying transgender service members within 30 days and begin 'separation actions' within 60 days. The memo, like Trump's Jan. 27 executive order on transgender troops, suggests a history of gender dysphoria — severe psychological distress that stems from a mismatch between a person's gender identity and sex at birth — is incompatible with military service. Military personnel diagnosed with gender dysphoria may be retained 'on a case-by-case basis,' provided there is a compelling government interest in doing so, the memo said. But service members will have to prove they never took steps to transition genders and demonstrate 36 months of stability living in line with their birth sex 'without clinically significant distress.' Trump and administration officials have sought to equate trans identity with deception and cast transgender people in the armed forces as a threat to military readiness and unit cohesion. 'A man's assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member,' Trump's executive order states. A 2016 RAND Corp. study commissioned by the Pentagon found that allowing trans individuals to serve had no negative impact on unit cohesion, operational effectiveness or readiness. Monday's lawsuit, the third to challenge Trump's executive order on transgender troops and one of at least a dozen filed against his order on the government's recognition of only two sexes, asks the court to block the administration from carrying out the directives. 'Simply put, Master Sergeant Ireland and Staff Sergeant Bade have a constitutional right not to be separated from military service based on their transgender status, a characteristic that has nothing to do with their fitness or ability to serve,' the lawsuit states. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
17-03-2025
- Health
- The Hill
Third challenge filed to Trump's order on transgender troops
Two transgender service members are suing the Trump administration over a pair of executive orders targeting transgender Americans and their implementation by the U.S. military. The lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey by two transgender men — Master Sergeant Logan Ireland and Staff Sergeant Nicholas Bear Bade — argues that President Trump's executive orders proclaiming the government recognizes only two sexes, male and female, and barring trans people from serving openly in the military subject transgender service members 'to unequal, harmful, and demeaning treatment.' Ireland and Bade, represented by GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, are also challenging Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Acting Air Force Secretary Gary Ashworth's implementation of those orders. Both Ireland and Bade are members of the U.S. Air Force with a combined 20 years of experience, according to court documents, and began their gender transitions over a decade ago. They have each been placed on administrative absence and told they can only continue serving if they do so according to their birth sex. 'It is not possible, though, for either Plaintiff to serve as a woman because each one has medically transitioned to be and live as a man,' Monday's lawsuit states. 'And given the implementation timeline that the Trump Administration has publicized, both Plaintiffs reasonably fear that, as early as March 26, 2025, involuntary administrative separation proceedings will be initiated against them because of their transgender status.' The Pentagon, in a Feb. 26 policy memo, directed military leaders to begin identifying transgender service members within 30 days and begin 'separation actions' within 60 days. The memo, like Trump's Jan. 27 executive order on transgender troops, suggests a history of gender dysphoria — severe psychological distress that stems from a mismatch between a person's gender identity and sex at birth — is incompatible with military service. Military personnel diagnosed with gender dysphoria may be retained 'on a case-by-case basis,' provided there is a compelling government interest in doing so, the memo said. But service members will have to prove they never took steps to transition genders and demonstrate 36 months of stability living in line with their birth sex 'without clinically significant distress.' Trump and administration officials have sought to equate trans identity with deception and cast transgender people in the armed forces as a threat to military readiness and unit cohesion. 'A man's assertion that he is a woman, and his requirement that others honor this falsehood, is not consistent with the humility and selflessness required of a service member,' Trump's executive order states. A 2016 RAND Corp. study commissioned by the Pentagon found that allowing trans individuals to serve had no negative impact on unit cohesion, operational effectiveness or readiness. Monday's lawsuit, the third to challenge Trump's executive order on transgender troops and one of at least a dozen filed against his order on the government's recognition of only two sexes, asks the court to block the administration from carrying out the directives. 'Simply put, Master Sergeant Ireland and Staff Sergeant Bade have a constitutional right not to be separated from military service based on their transgender status, a characteristic that has nothing to do with their fitness or ability to serve,' the lawsuit states.
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Trump added to lawsuit regarding transgender athletes in New Hampshire
On Wednesday, a judge in New Hampshire allowed President Donald Trump's name to be added to the list of defendants in a lawsuit regarding transgender athletes in children's sports. The original lawsuit was filed last August after the governor of New Hampshire signed a bill into law prohibiting transgender girls from participating in female sports. The two teenage plaintiffs, Parker Tirrell and Iris Turmelle turned their case into a national issue following Trump's recent executive order banning biological males from competing in girls' and women's sports. The order titled 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports,' signed last week said that allowing transgender athletes into female sports 'is demeaning, unfair, and dangerous to women and girls, and denies women and girls the equal opportunity to participate and excel in competitive sports.' It also warned schools not to allow transgender participation by threatening to remove federal funding to schools that go against the order, adding that 'the policy of the United States is to oppose male competitive participation in women's sports more broadly, as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity and truth.' In September, a federal judge granted a preliminary injunction allowing the plaintiffs to compete on girls' sports teams while their lawsuit was ongoing. But the recently amended complaint argues that Trump's order now threatens their participation. 'The Trump Administration's executive orders amount to a coordinated campaign to prevent transgender people from functioning in society. The systematic targeting of transgender people across American institutions is chilling, but targeting young people in schools, denying them support and essential opportunities during their most vulnerable years, is especially cruel,' said Chris Erchull, an attorney at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, who is representing the plaintiffs along with the American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire, in a press release. 'School sports are an important part of education — something no child should be denied simply because of who they are. Our clients Parker and Iris simply want to go to school, learn, and play on teams with their peers,' Erchull added. New Hampshire is one of 27 states that has some form of ban on transgender participation in sports consistent with their gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project. Utah's ban was put in place in 2022 after the Utah Legislature overrode Gov. Spencer Cox's veto of a bill banning transgender girls from participating in female school sports.
CNN
12-02-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Two transgender girls sue to challenge Trump's executive order banning them from girls' school sports
Two transgender girls who attend high school in New Hampshire challenged the Trump administration's recent executive order banning transgender girls and women from participating in girls' sports, according to a court filing. The teens, Parker Tirrell, 16, and Iris Turmelle, 15, previously sued New Hampshire education officials over a state law prohibiting them from competing on girls' sports teams at their public high schools. On Wednesday, their attorneys GLAD Law and the ACLU of New Hampshire filed an amended complaint asking the court to expand the case nationally to challenge Trump's executive order. Chris Erchull, senior staff attorney at GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders, one of the plaintiffs' representatives, said the executive order and others 'amount to a coordinated campaign to prevent transgender people from functioning in society.' 'School sports are an important part of education — something no child should be denied simply because of who they are,' Erchull said in a news release. 'Our clients Parker and Iris simply want to go to school, learn, and play on teams with their peers.' Last week, Trump signed an executive order titled 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' and declared, 'The war on women's sports is over.' The order threatens to rescind federal funding from educational programs that allow transgender girls to participate in girls' sports, in part by using Title IX, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in education. Other executive orders in the first few weeks of the Trump administration have targeted transgender women in the military and in the federal prison system. Those have similarly faced legal challenges; a federal judge last week blocked the administration from enforcing the order seeking to have transgender women detained in men's prison facilities. The participation of transgender girls and women in sports has raised questions about the balance between inclusion and fairness on the playing field. Twenty-five states across the country have passed laws banning transgender youth from participating in sports consistent with their gender identity, according to the Movement Advancement Project, a nonprofit think tank. According to the lawsuit, Parker plays on her high school's soccer team, and Iris wants to try out for her school's tennis team. A news release from the two includes quotes explaining in simple language why they want to play sports. 'I love playing soccer and we had a great season last fall,' said Parker. 'I just want to go to school like other kids and keep playing the game I love.' 'The chance to try out for tennis means new teammates, new friends, and a sense of fun and belonging,' Iris said. 'I just want the same opportunities as other girls at my school.' Their suit against the New Hampshire law remains ongoing. In September, a US District Court ordered the state to allow both teens to play sports with the girls' team while the litigation plays out. This story has been updated with new information. CNN's Nic F. Anderson contributed to this report.
